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5 Common Cleaning Mistakes Many Restaurants Make

Cleaning your restaurant is of course very important, but there are some things you and your staff should be cleaning and some things you try not to clean in front of your customers.
Generally you can see this from the point of view if you were the customer. There are cases where restaurant owners just miss these things, so here are the 5 common mistakes many restaurants make. This so hopefully you can consider to avoid them, and drive better customer satisfaction!

1) Cleaning in front of customers

There is a big difference between a staff member holding a toilet brush, or a table wipe when talking to a customer. Holding a toilet brush, or other ‘extreme’ cleaning aids will suggest to anyone visiting your restaurant that perhaps your restaurant is clean, but probably not hygienic. There is an important distinction between the two. Both are great, and important for happy customers, but make sure that your staff understand the difference between them. The best way to do this is to constantly think of the situation from the customer's point of view. If a cleaning activity seems unappetizing, do it when the customers aren’t there!

2) Cleaning everything at the end of the day

However, don’t just clean literally everything at the end of the day as this may leave your employees feeling irritated during the day and can lead to your clients being unhappily served. Instead, think about the separation of tasks. Things such as dusting, hoovering or cleaning the floor can still be left until the end of the day (or the next morning) when no customers will be bothered. However you can consider other timings for cleaning the kitchen, bathroom, behind a counter or even spraying tables with disinfectant and wiping. Most especially the latter can be done throughout the day and can be seen in the positive light by customers.

3) Not paying attention to what the restaurant smells like

A common issue among restaurateurs is that they get used to the smell of their own restaurant, so they don’t notice if there is an unwanted odor constantly greeting guests. Although this may smell wonderful to you, it isn’t always a good thing.

Many smells such as spices can still be too strong for some so consider your customers and listen to feedback. Generally speaking, a nice fresh scent can suggest quality and cleanliness especially on your waiting or common areas. Try using Ambi Pur Air Effects and Ambi Pur Set and Refresh which can help you remove unwanted odor and keep a pleasant scent.

4) Using bad quality products which waste time and money

The materials in your kitchen, just like the ingredients in your food can make a world of difference. Using economically effective cleaning products right from the start will help create a series of good habits for your staff. For example, by using high-quality products such as Joy Dishwashing Liquid in the kitchen for cleaning your dishes, pots, and pans will help your staff spend less effort scrubbing away grease. Coupled with good training, your staff could be more efficient and hence use their time more on other important tasks. Moreover, since Joy sachets conveniently come in pre-packed doses or sachets, you and your staff can manage and track product usage!

A useful kitchen cleaning tip to try and overcome inefficient habits with your staff while they are still new and working extra hard to get into the swing of things. You can aid this approach by creating a rota as well. A rota can help you ensure that everything is cleaned regularly, without stress or worry. Different restaurants require different routines depending on many factors, such as weather, amount of customers etc. You may have observed that some restaurateurs even show their bathroom rota. You can see this as a clipboard placed at the back of a bathroom door and signed every 3-4 hours as a staff member goes inside to check if everything is clean.

5) Not making enough effort in the recruitment process

Another potential mistake made in the restaurant business is lacking full attention to the character of the cleaners in their establishment. Try to ask them questions during your recruitment about their families or about different responsibilities they have had during their lives. Their answer to this question will help you judge if they are a good fit and trustworth to keep your restaurant immaculate. Remember, an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure so invest more time and scrutiny during recruitment!

We hope you were able to get a few points you can use for your restaurant from our article above. While we have highlighted 5 common mistakes, there are surely many more to watch out and we recommend that you continue to read and invest on your learning.